Williams, who also revealed in the interview that she secretly married Phil Elverum earlier this year, said Ledger's death made her a magnet for paparazzi who wanted to exploit her grief.

“It was unmanageable to be stalked like that, every moment of the day,” she said. “So I left, in a desire to create a sane home environment...When you’re a single parent, and that element of provider and protection is missing, it’s scary.”

Williams said she ultimately moved upstate with her daughter, which turned out to be a blessing in disguise.

“You know, getting on a bicycle and being out and coming back for meals, and exploring snakeskins and arrowheads and cliffs and plants and abandoned houses, and having that sense of freedom and safety in the world,” she said.

Even there, though, Williams encountered some uncomfortable pitfalls of celebrity.

“I’ll never forget going to the post office and seeing a sign hung on the wall for anyone with information about myself and my daughter, to please call this number,” she said. “Um, so I took that down.”